{"id":395417,"date":"2020-12-08T09:03:46","date_gmt":"2020-12-08T14:03:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.marketnewsdesk.com\/?p=395417"},"modified":"2020-12-08T09:03:46","modified_gmt":"2020-12-08T14:03:46","slug":"watermill-asset-management-reinforces-the-need-for-meaningful-and-urgent-change-at-ziopharm-oncology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marketnewsdesk.com\/index.php\/watermill-asset-management-reinforces-the-need-for-meaningful-and-urgent-change-at-ziopharm-oncology\/","title":{"rendered":"WaterMill Asset Management Reinforces the Need for Meaningful and Urgent Change at Ziopharm Oncology"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nWaterMill Asset Management Reinforces the Need for Meaningful and Urgent Change at Ziopharm Oncology\n<\/p>\n

Cites Numerous Instances of Ziopharm Continuing to Dismiss Investor Feedback and Disseminate Blatant Distortions, Including Regarding the Company\u2019s Engagement With WaterMill\u00a0 <\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Highlights Concerning Interlocks That Still Exist Among Current and Recently-Departed Board Members<\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Underscores That Recently-Appointed Directors Mary Thistle and Kevin Buchi Lack Meaningful Ownership Perspectives and Have Presided Over Sizable Share Price Erosion at Other Companies \u00a0\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Urges Shareholders to Recognize That WaterMill\u2019s Three-Member Slate is the Right Remedy Following Years of Toxic Governance<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE<\/a>)–
\nWaterMill Asset Management Corp. (together with its affiliates, \u201cWaterMill\u201d or \u201cwe\u201d), which collectively with the other participants in its consent solicitation beneficially owns approximately 3.3% of the outstanding shares of Ziopharm Oncology, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIOP) (\u201cZiopharm\u201d or the \u201cCompany\u201d), today issued the below letter to shareholders.\n<\/p>\n

\nAs a reminder, WaterMill is encouraging shareholders to consent to all of its proposals by voting on the WHITE<\/span><\/b> consent card. We urge shareholders to sign, date and return their WHITE<\/span><\/b> consent card today. Please return each and every WHITE<\/span><\/b> consent card received. Do not return any green revocation card (even as a protest vote). Learn more at www.FixZiopharm.com<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n

\n***\n<\/p>\n

\nDecember 8, 2020\n<\/p>\n

\nFellow Shareholder:\n<\/p>\n

\nWaterMill Asset Management Corp. (together with its affiliates, \u201cWaterMill\u201d or \u201cwe\u201d) wants to emphasize that Ziopharm Oncology, Inc. (\u201cZiopharm\u201d or the \u201cCompany\u201d) is at a critical inflection point. The Board of Directors (the \u201cBoard\u201d) has put Ziopharm on a path to financial ruin by burning through capital, incurring mounting expenses and failing to deliver value-generating clinical progress. Despite receiving blunt investor feedback in recent years, the Board opted to pursue a string of self-directed refreshments that only solidified the Company\u2019s abysmal governance and dismal business practices. This is why we have taken the extraordinary step of initiating a consent solicitation to facilitate meaningful and timely boardroom change.\n<\/p>\n

We firmly believe that our three aligned, independent and well-qualified director candidates collectively represent the right shareholder-driven solution to help Ziopharm quickly reverse its tailspin. <\/b>Our minority slate possesses the capital allocation acumen, commercial intensity, financial expertise and ownership perspectives that have been lacking in the boardroom for far too long. Each member of our slate also recognizes that Ziopharm\u2019s deteriorating cash position will require a reconstituted Board to expeditiously address challenges and promptly pursue new sources of liquidity.\n<\/p>\n

\nAlthough Ziopharm contends that it has tried to engage with WaterMill to settle this contest, these are disingenuous and misrepresentative claims. Not only has the Company taken every opportunity to discredit our integrity-rich director candidates, but all offers to date have been reactive and woefully inadequate relative to the litany of governance issues that exist throughout the c-suite and boardroom. The incumbents\u2019 blatant, last-minute distortions only reinforce why our full slate needs to be added to the Board. Indeed, Ziopharm\u2019s leadership has brazenly dismissed investor input and has refused to even acknowledge that long-term shareholders have had to endure staggering underperformance over every relevant time horizon.\n<\/p>\n

\nAs shareholders consider how to vote in the final days of this consent solicitation process, we believe it is important to focus on an irrefutable fact: Ziopharm\u2019s attempts at incremental and self-directed boardroom change have only fueled more shareholder suffering over the past five years. This is why we have invested considerable energy, resources and time in this campaign to offer shareholders the right solution at the right time. We cannot continue to roll the dice on Ziopharm\u2019s perpetual promises of nearing a so-called turning point that has remained consistently elusive.\n<\/p>\n

DO NOT BE MISLED BY ZIOPHARM\u2019S APPARENT LAST-DITCH EFFORT TO VILIFY WATERMILL AND SMEAR ITS DIRECTOR CANDIDATES <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\nNow that three sizable shareholders and two proxy advisory firms have publicly endorsed WaterMill\u2019s case for change, Ziopharm\u2019s leadership has been scrambling in recent days to demonstrate responsiveness and re-write history. We urge shareholders to take into account the following pieces of context that the incumbents are apparently neglecting to mention in their communications:\n<\/p>\n